Choice In Decor

Posted on Mon Oct 25, 2021 @ 1:34am by Captain Larisna Koralova & Lieutenant Rei Yamashi

Mission: Interludes - These Are Our Voyages...
Location: Lounge "Hornet's Nest" - USS Hornet

Larisna found herself in the ship's lounge, a night looking to be like she would get no sleep, that her demons would once again resurface and force her to relive a battle or another during the Dominion War. She'd tried to wear herself out first, some physical fitness down in the recreation center. As such, she wore loose fitting lightweight clothes, sweatbands on her wrists bore the Starfleet arrowhead and her black shirt bore "HORNET" in white on the front, the Starfleet arrowhead on the back towards the top. But since that wasn't doing it, she wanted to be reminded of why they were here.

The "Hornet's Nest" was the name given to the ship's lounge, a fitting name but no one was sure what to do with the appearance and decor once the ship was launched. In some cases, no one really did anything - the Enterprise and Voyager had nothing special about their lounges. But the decision came down to look to the ship's name for more than a bad pun for inspiration. And so, the lounge was now much like the old 602 Club on Earth. One part lounge, one part memorial to the pioneers of the past. While the centerpiece of the "Nest" was a display case dedicated to the Apollo 11 and 12 astronauts, including replicas of Neil Armstrong's and Pete Conrad's suits, and various memorabilia that went up to the Moon, Larisna also requested items from all over the Federation to be replicated and put up. Images, and memorabilia of the first steps taken into space by the Vulcans, Andorians, Tellarites, Trill, Betazoids, and even Bajorans lined the walls of the lounge. These spanned various eras, even touching on early warp ships and pre-Federation days.

It was a nice reminder of the pioneers and pathfinders who came before, the example they set and how the hope was today to fulfill the promise of a better tomorrow.

Larisna sat nursing a mixed berry drink, staring out at the stars in front of them before looking at the Apollo display case in the middle of the room.

Looking through the display case Larisna would spy a sight connected to SOME moons, just not hers. The assistant chief of the engineering department stood on the other side of the case admiring the contents, a mug of tea in her hands that was shaped like a carrot. Real funny, sure, but she took the joke in stride. She was admiring the relics of the dawn of humanity's exodus from the world that gave birth to them. "Here men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the moon, July 1969 AD We came in peace for all mankind." she read softly, almost reverently. She couldn't even imagine what it must have been like, trapped in that capsule hurtling through the cosmos between their home world and their beacon, their lantern in the night. To discover it was a dead moon must have hurt their ambitions, but the symbolism.

The rabbitess was dressed off duty, casual shirt and pants combo. The shirt was black, and had the image of a cartoon fluff of a rabbit sitting in an oversized hot dog bun. The caption underneath it read 'Bun Bun'. The pants lacked any form of cartoon or depiction of any form. Simple black denim, with a wider flange at the end to accommodate big broad paws. On said paws, she simply wore simple sandals. Easy to put on, easy to take off. When she noticed the glance of the Captain, she gave a nod. "Captain."

Larisna snapped out of her thoughts when addressed, blinking and then smiling. "Hello." She made her way over to Rei, an amused chuckle for the Engineer's t-shirt, "That's a good one. The shirt, I mean, funny."

"One of this ship's previous namesakes had an involvement with the first two successful manned Human lunar missions. The Smithsonian provided us replicas and the replicator codes for this stuff." Larisna explained.

Rei gave a soft smile, "I'm told that Earth's Rabbit resemble us, so I might as well embrace the similarity. Besides, from what I've seen of them, they're adorable enough to keep the resemblance." she offered, then turned to regard the paraphernalia once again. "I've seen the first exoenvironment suits we used back on Ts'usu. They were enormous, bulky, and just all around cobbled together in appearance. We didn't know the full scope of what to expect, so the engineers planned for everything."

"Seems the same was true here. There's something to be said for the design though. Less of a uniform and more... a suit of armor." she paused, "Like the knights in Earth stories of old." she offered. "Your ships are named for moments in history. I admire that." she continued, her hollow glance now sliding from the suits to the Captain. Lusterless eyes. No shine. No spark. That... they kept hidden.

"Our are named to sound intimidating. Oblivion Midnight. Infinity's Eclipse." she offered, with a giggle.

"Some are historical, but I mean, Starfleet has been around for a couple of centuries, names will repeat. And I could go on for days about the types of names." Larisna replied, "And yeah, these were the early EVA suits. Which I find kind of funny that they haven't changed as much as one would think. I always found that odd."

"But perhaps there was a militaristic thinking too, common of the era. Thirty years prior, give or take a few months, Earth was plunged into a destructive conflict. Thirty years later from the Apollo 11 mission, they would be again." Larisna said, taking a sip of her drink. World War Two and then the Eugenics Wars...almost equally separated from this time.

"Earth was actually in a period known as the Cold War. It was a standoff, two sides tried to sway as many nations to their side and built enough nuclear fission bombs to wipe out Earth several hundred times over. But for the briefest of moments, there was a chance to look up." Larisna tapped the case in front of a coin shaped item that looked like primitive circuitry for a primitive computer. A holographic display came up with a text file. They were messages from world leaders that were encoded on the original chip back at the Smithsonian. Hopes for the success of the mission, hopes to meet other life in peace, hopes that the mission would lead to peace on Earth. But that would not come for another hundred years.

"Streamlined for new advances, but if it works, there's no need to fully replace it." the rabbitess commented on the style of EVA suit, but then was drawn to a hush from the text file. Well wishes, hopes, dreams... "Sugoi..." she spoke, barely above a whisper. "The more I learn about Earth's history, the more I'm amazed at how similar to our own it was." she took a step back, and a breath, "Okay so, early Ts'usu there was war and strife. Thirteen warlords ruled, and ruined, the world. Then along comes the First Emperor." she smirked. Whether she believed this wasn't important to the story, "So the tale goes that the First Emperor admonishes the warlords, accusing them of ruining the jewel given to them, and declares them unfit. To the Moons, he said, until you are worthy. Then the First Emperor ascended to the moons, which were already ready for the natives."

"Then the population moves to the moons, where we wait eternal for our time to return to our ancestral home, yarra yarra." she smirked, "I don't buy it, but it makes for great story. But even in story... hopes of peace, world leaders coming together, mission to the moon. Trick is, we didn't go back." a giggle. "Fascinating overlap though. I'm sure someone's writing a book on it."

"I love the mission patches, though. So colorful."

"Well, something I've found with mythology is there's often a grain of truth. Earth and Trill have plenty. Trill mythos tends to be more spiritual, particularly on the first symbiosis stories. A bit long winded and rather dry though, so I know what you mean at not taking it seriously." Larisna commented with her own smile, "And I've often wondered why we did away with mission patches. Even up until the founding of the Federation, every ship had one. Well. Every Human ship. I think maybe it was a hard sell to the others as they joined. They tried something different in the 2260s, different insignias worn on the uniform, but that was fairly short lived."

Rei gave a smirk, "You know, I've often wondered how the first Trill happened. Okay, so I read up on them, and they have a symbiosis with a longer lived entity, and I often wonder about the first Trill that ever saw one of their symbiotic creatures and said, 'You know, that'd look great inside me'." she shook her head, giggling. "But that's another story. Mission Patches, yes."

"You know, I honestly don't know. I know we don't do them. The Dalacari don't do them. The Slate I think might try to eat them. The Trilark would love them, they're all about customization." she detailed. "I guess when humanity tried to distance themselves from their past, and the conflicts of the past, maybe try tried to eliminate competition? Best I got." a pause, a smirk, and Rei looked over at Larisna, "Maybe we should design one for the Hornet? Let everyone know who we are and who we represent?"

Larisna gestured to a table nearest to the display, "Sorry, I wore myself out. Let's grab a seat."

Once they sat down, Larisna chuckled a little, "It's hard to say how that happened. I've asked Segen, the symbiote that my mother carries, but no one really knows how it came to be. I tried to become a host, but the Symbiosis Commission don't accept hybrids. Risky to the symbiote."

"As for mission patches, well, maybe we could still come up with something. Display it here. Make our own identity along with the pioneers who came before us. Past and future in the same room." She smiled, "...this place, it reminds me why I joined."

"Leave a little something to mark your presence in history." Rei responded. "Plus, give the crew a little something to unite under. Not as bold a statement as a flag, though. A flag in the wrong hands is dangerous. In the right hands, deadly." she shook her head, enjoying some tea from her carrot mug. "Well, I know why I transferred as far away from home as I did. If you don't mind my asking, what brought you aboard?"

"If you mean to the Hornet, I took the posting because I had a chance to get back out and explore. I entered the Academy in 2369, so that means I graduated in 2373 - the year the Borg attacked Earth for the second time and the year the Dominion War started. War shaped much of my early years in Starfleet. But I didn't join to fight wars. Defend the Federation sure, but not to fight like that. The problem is...I had an aptitude for it. Tactics, combat, all of it. My father joked while I was in the Academy it was because I liked to play chess so much." Larisna sighed.

"My career was then defined by the scars left by the Dominion. I had the chance to command the USS Galaxy. For a first time command to be a Galaxy-class would have had people fighting to get. I turned it down. Because I would've been kept on patrol, flag waving and wargame missions. That class was built to be a deep space exploration ship, even Admiral Picard said that the Enterprise-D was described as a "ship of peace". But it just so happened it was also good at war, so their image changed during the war too..." Larisna took a drink, "Anyways, I had a crisis of faith, considered resigning. I was talked into teaching Strategic Ops at the Academy while I rethink my career. Now, I want to show the example of the Starfleet I wanted to join in 25 years ago."

Rei listened, ears up and alert. "Shaped by war." she mused, "I can relate. Every able bodied son and daughter of Ts'usu serves a minimum tour. Mandatory, in the service of the Empire. It's to keep the conflict at the border from getting out of hand, though between you, me, and the dead.... throwing soldiers at the border is a sign it's already out of hand." she shook her head. "I joined Starfleet because of the ideal you're looking to project. Fairness, Diplomacy, Peace. A feeling of belonging. A place to work out differences before the shooting starts."

She took a sip, "I've done plenty of shooting." she said softly, mostly to her tea. "I admire what Starfleet is trying to be, trying to offer. A lot of Ts'usugi are worried that joining the Federation means an end to their heritage and history, that the whole of Ts'usugi culture will drown in the ocean that is the boundless Federation. I think we'll do just fine. We can help you, and you can help preserve us. At least, that's what I think."

"I... I did a lot during my three. I'm looking forward to making up for it over the next few."

Larisna nodded in appreciation. They had some surprising common ground. That was good, if for all the wrong reasons that caused it. She shifted that though to the concerns about the Federation.

"That's I think a common question everyone has. I mean, when you have as many races in one organization, it's a valid concern." Larisna replied, "But I think at this point, I can safely say that most races tend to figure out how to maintain their identity while also contributing and benefitting from the greater whole. I've never felt compelled to reject either my Human or Trill sides. If anything, I've embraced both. I know that isn't always true elsewhere, so it's not unequivocal."

"I believe in what the Federation can be and what we aspire for. Where everyone is free to pursue their dreams and goals without being bound by so much hardship. It's not always true, it's not anywhere near perfect, but we try our best. I joined Starfleet because I wanted to see what else was out there, not to see how many people I can get to join the Federation, but maybe come away with a greater understanding to perhaps help us do better. You look at a map of the quadrants and see we've only seen a fraction of space. What else waits for us out there?" Larisna continued.

Rei gave a series of nods. "Oh trust me, I get that it's a system made better by its parts, rather than trying to get the parts to conform. Just, tough to sell that to ten thousand years of heritage." the rabbitess smirked. "But, I like the way you sell it. Honest and direct. No bull." another nod, a sip from her carrot mug. "Knowing that there's no compulsion really helps put me at ease."

She was quiet for a moment, lost in thought. "I feel, at home here. Tranquil. A feeling of home is a good feeling for a Daughter of Ts'usu. It's... a familiarity, a comfort." she looked back to the exhibit, "Knowing there's history here, helps me know what I'm fighting for. What I'm defending. It's a welcome feeling."

"Yeah. I thought that would help others. I don't like a boring drab lounge. The rest just took time and ideas." Larisna replied, "But I keep myself grounded too - that's why the ready room has images from Earth and Trill. And the models of the three ships I served on, Savannah, Knox and Galaxy. Future's just as important too, as is the present. Hard to sometimes live in those when the demons in the past want to be let out from time to time."

She finished off the berry drink, "Hence why I'm still awake. Everyone wants to talk about the glory and the medals, no one wants to talk about the insomnia and nightmares, the moments you forget where you're at because some sense snapped you back to the past for a moment." Larisna then paused and chuckled, "Sorry, didn't mean to unload all the cargo just there. But I do think you're probably the only person on the ship who understands. That's...comforting, I guess."

Rei gave a nod, staring into her tea. "I couldn't fall asleep either." she admitted. Silent for a moment longer, "There's no glory in it, except for those who don't life it. My therapy is distance. I'm halfway across the cosmos, and I still hear it." she paused again. No shakes, no short breath. Just the realization there was someone she could talk with. "No no, please. I think... I think it'll do us both a little good to have someone to talk to, talk with... about things no one else can see. Can hear. I think having someone that is always ready to attack the shadow of a pillow is..." deep breath...

"I think we can help each other, sir. In a universe where everyone is ready to pull the trigger, it'll be comforting to serve with someone who knows the value of not."

"I taught that same lesson at the Academy. The best thing you can do sometimes is nothing." Larisna smiled, "But I learned a lot too - one of the instructors, a humble hard-working man, I think you'd like him, he told me that those ghosts of the past are the worst kinds of liars and the loudest. Can't ignore them, so do the next best thing - defy them."